LAWN MOWER
Alwaysobservesafety ruleswhen per-
formingany maintenance.
TIRES
• Keep tires free of gasoline,oil, or insect
controlchemicalswhichcan harmrubber.
• Avoid stumps,stones, deep ruts, sharp
objectsand other hazardsthat may
causetire damage.
DRIVEWHEELS
Checkfront drivewheels eachtime before
you mow to be sure they movefreely.
The wheelsnot turningfreely meanstrash,
grasscuttings, e tc.areinthedrivewheelarea
and mustbe cleanedto free drivewheels.
If necessaryto clean the drive wheels, be
sure to clean both frontwheels.
1. Removehubcaps,Iocknuts& washers.
2. Removewheelsfrom wheel adjusters.
3. Removeany trash or grass cuttings
from insidethe dust cover,pinionand/
or drive wheelgear teeth.
4. Putwheels back in place.
NOTE: If after cleaning,the drivewheels
do not turn freely, contacta Sears or other
qualifiedservicecenter.
BLADE CARE
For best results,blade mustbe kept sharp.
Replacea bent or damagedblade.
A CAUTION:Useonlya replacementblade
approved bythemanufacturer o fyourmower.
Using a blade not approvedby the manu-
facturer of your moweris hazardous,could
damageyourmowerandvoidyourwarranty.
TO REMOVEBLADE
1. Disconnectspark plug wire fromspark
plug and placewire where it cannot
come in contactwith plug.
2. Turn lawn moweron its side. Make
sure air filter andcarburetorare up.
3. Usea wood blockbetweenbladeand
mowerhousingto preventbladefrom
turningwhen removingbladebolt.
NOTE: Protectyour handswith gloves
and/orwrap bladewith heavycloth.
4. Removeblade bolt by turning counter-
clockwise.
5. Removeblade& attachinghardware
(bolt, lockwasher & hardenedwasher).
TO REPLACEBLADE
1. Positionbladeon the bladeadapter
aligningthe two (2) holes in the blade
with the raisedlugs on the adapter.
2. Besure the trailingedge of blade(oppo-
site sharpedge)is uptowardthe engine.
3. Installthe blade boltwith the lock
washer and hardenedwasher into
blade adapterand crankshaft.
13
4. Use blockof wood betweenbladeand
lawn mowerhousingand tightenthe
blade bolt, turningclockwise.
Recommendedtighteningtorque:35-40ft.lbs.
IMPORTANT: Blade bolt is heat treated.
If bolt needs replacing,replaceonly with
approvedbolt shown in the RepairParts
sectionof this manual.
Blade adapter
Key
Crankshaft
Lockwasher
_
_
_
o
bolt
Hardened
_
Crankshaft
TO SHARPEN
BLADE
NOTE:
We do not recommend
sharpening
the blade - but if you do, be sure the blade
is balanced.
Care should
be taken to keep
the blade balanced. An unbalanced
bladewill
cause eventual
damage
to mower or engine.
• The blade can be sharpened
with a file
or on a grinding
wheel.
Do not attempt
to sharpen
while on the mower.
• To check blade balance,
drive a nail into
a beam or wall. Leave
about one inch of
the straight
nail exposed.
Place center
hole of blade over the head of the nail.
If blade is balanced,
it should
remain
in
a horizontal
position.
If either end of the
blade moves
downward,
sharpen
the
heavy end until the blade is balanced.
GRASS
CATCHER
• The grass catcher
may be hosed with
water,
but must be dry when used.
• Check your grass catcher
often for dam-
age or deterioration.
Through
normal
use it will wear.
If catcher
needs
replac-
ing, replace
only with approved
replace-
ment catcher
shown
in the Repair
Parts
section
of this manual.
Give the lawn
mower model
number
when ordering.
GEAR
CASE
• To keep your drive system
working
properly,
the gear case and area around
the drive should
be kept clean and free
of trash build-up.
Clean
under the drive
cover twice a season.
The gear case is filled with lubricant
to the
proper level at the factory.
The only time
the lubricant
needs
attention
is if service
has been performed
on the gear case.
If lubricant
is required,
use only Texaco
Starplex
Premium
1 Grease,
Part No.
750369.
Do not substitute.